Men's soccer turnaround a labor of love for McMurry coach Tarango

For Tyler Tarango, turning around the McMurry men's soccer program is more than a career goal. It's personal.

A player for the War Hawks from 2009 to 2012, Tarango's McMurry teams posted a combined 16-57-3 record in four years — topping two wins in only his senior season, which ended with an 11-13 record and sixth-place finish in the National Christian College Athletic Association national tournament.

So to lead his alma mater to its first winning season since 2004 and have it in position for a return to the NCCAA national tournament is more for the second-year head coach than a professional achievement.

"It's everything," he said. "Like I told (athletic director Sam Ferguson) when I took the job, I'm never going to leave this job for another soccer coaching job because this is my school. I've been here for seven years, I bleed maroon."

It's that loyalty to the south Abilene university that drives Tarango, who was an assistant coach in 2015 before taking over the program the following season.

Having experienced only brief glimpses of success as a player and coached the War Hawks through a couple of tough seasons — McMurry finished 1-15-1 in 2015 and 3-10-3 last season — Tarango was determined to build something special that could last.

If the current season is any indication, he may be well on his way.

Picked to finish ninth in the American Southwest Conference preseason poll, the War Hawks (8-5-3 overall) went 5-3-3 in league play, knocking off eventual league champion Mary Hardin-Baylor 1-0 on Oct. 19, before defeating crosstown rival Hardin-Simmons by the same score in their regular-season finale on Oct. 28.

It was McMurry's first win over Cowboys since 2003.

"That was probably my favorite game," Tarango said of the HSU win. "I've been here three years and I played here for four. That's seven years without beating them ever. I always saw their success. I'd always see them in the conference finals, winning conference, and I'd see them moving onto the national tournament, and I wanted to beat them so bad."

Now the War Hawks are headed to the NCCAA Central Regional Tournament in Oklahoma City, where they'll play Mid-America Christian at 2 p.m. Wednesday. With a win in that game, McMurry would advance to the regional finals on Friday for a chance to reach the national tournament in Florida.

Because they're completing the final year of their transition back to Division III, the War Hawks were ineligible for ASC and NCAA tournament play. And though Tarango would have loved to have seen how his team could have done with another shot at the conference's best, he's excited about the challenge that lays ahead.

He said a trip to NCCAA national tournament "would put the ultimate cherry on top of this season."

While an 8-5-3 overall record may not jump off the page, it's an impressive achievement when placed in the context of the War Hawks' recent past. Since posting a combined 38-18-4 record from 2002-04, McMurry has averaged just 3.6 wins and 12.5 losses over the past 12 seasons.

And with four wins combined over the 2015 and 2016 seasons, no one but the War Hawks themselves expected much from this McMurry team.

Tarango and his players noticed early, though, that something was different about this group.

McMurry junior defender Josh Erwin(Photo: .)

"The first day of practice, we got out here and you could see heat waves on the turf," said junior defender Josh Erwin, a team captain and second-team all-ASC selection. "It was just amazing to see the grind, the effort, the perseverance that every single person had. And we had just met each other. It was like, 'Oh wow, if we keep this up and keep doing this the whole year, we might actually do something.'"

The War Hawks won three of their first four games, never losing more than two in a row the rest of the way. They finished the regular season especially strong, going 4-1-3 over their final eight matches, including the wins over UMHB and HSU.

"The UMHB win, man, that was fantastic," Tarango said. "Last year, we got destroyed there 9-0. It was the hardest game I've ever seen in my life. For them to be ranked and come to our place, I told the guys, 'Why not us? Why can't we beat anybody on any given day?'

"The guys believed in that, and they believed from the jump that we can win every single game. That helped out a lot."

That confidence and belief is something Tarango has infused into the program. And with it has come an increased commitment from the players.

"The culture has just changed," Erwin said. "We had 12 guys come back. That's the most we've had in a long time. We brought in maybe 17 guys, and when they came in, they hopped on. We didn't even have to stop the bandwagon. They just hopped on and we just kept the truck moving. And we've been moving ever since."

The goal now is to extend the ride as long as possible, particularly for the team's three seniors.

McMurry senior goalkeeper Alex Chavez(Photo: .)

One of those, goalkeeper Alex Chavez, has already set single-season school records for save percentage (.894), goals against average (0.48) and shutouts (8). He also holds the McMurry career shutouts record with 11.

He said he's not ready for the season to end.

"It's my last year, so I have to go out with a bang," he said. "We're going to win both games and go to nationals right after that in Florida."

Regardless of how this season ends, Tarango is hoping it's the beginning of something even better. As much fun as this fall has been, he's not interested in short-term success. He wants something that can be sustained.

"I honestly think we could be conference champs," he said. "We've beaten the best teams. We've just got to be a little more consistent. I brought in a decent recruiting class this last year. I've just got to bring in another good one this year, and we could compete right away.

"This year, we got fourth. We were projected to come in ninth, and we did way better than anyone expected. I think if we can bring in another strong recruiting class with a strong returning class, we can compete right away. That's, ultimately, what my goal is, to see my alma mater make it to the conference finals."